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Bruce Springsteen's 'Magic' Media Blitz
Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band perform during the Vote For Change concert in New Jersey on Oct. 13, 2004.
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Magic, Bruce Springsteen's first studio album with the E Street Band in five years, came out earlier this month. The event has occasioned at least a pair of network-TV appearances — including a live morning concert on NBC's Today show and a mortifying 60 Minutes interview.
Fresh Air rock critic Ken Tucker says Springsteen's approach to promoting the album — and the way the news media are receiving it — says something about both the state of the media (precarious) and Springsteen's place in American pop culture.
The good news: Magic, with its elliptical lyrics and its anti-war mood, is no knee-jerk-lefty concert-tour souvenir, but a heckuva good album from a rocker who's both a thoughtful middle-aged man and a vital artist making adjustments to his trademark sound.
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But the game has changed: Congress voted to eliminate funding for public media across the country. Here at LAist that means a loss of $1.7 million in our budget every year. We want to assure you that despite growing threats to free press and free speech, LAist will remain a voice you know and trust. Speaking frankly, the amount of reader support we receive will help determine how strong of a newsroom we are going forward to cover the important news in our community.
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Thank you for your generous support and belief in the value of independent news.
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